Parachute-harness



E. R. BOLAND.

PARACHUTE HARNESS.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 5.1919.

1,385,773. Patented July 26, 1921.

2 SHEETS-SHEET fizwezzfax- Zfda' ard/i. 5 014 ad E. R. BOLAND.

PARACHUTE HARNESS. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 5. 1919.

Patented July 26, 1921'.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Z'lfward 190/0 K 0! lo/v PATENT OFFICE.

EDWARD ROY BOLAND, OF ARCADIA, CALIFORNIA.

PARACHUTE-HARNESS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 26', 1921.

Application filed June 5, 1919. Serial No. 302,001.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD ROY BOLAND, a citizen of the United States, residing at Arcadia, in the count of Los Angeles and State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Parachute- Harness, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to parachute harnesses and has for its particular object, the provision of a simple, comfortable and eflicient body harness adapted to be used by persons engaged in aerial navigation.

further object is to which when worn will al ow free access to all parts of the body, and in fact, render it possible for the wearer to swim with it on. The invention contemplates that the harness may be worn in either of two positions, with the point of suspension in front or in back of the body, the balance of the body being slightly forward of the vertical position, when the point of suspension is in front, thus making it possible to land on the toes.

It is also intended that the construction of the harness shall be such as to make it possible to turn in niidair in order to face the direction in which the parachute is traveling. The harness may readily be put on or taken ofl' without trouble, and is adjustable to fit any sized person. Y

Other and further objects of the invention will appear as the nature of the same is better understood from consideration of the following description taken in conjunction with the. drawings, in which like numerals indicate the same arts throughout the several views, and in w ich- Figure 1 represents a plan view of the harness, one of the leg straps being shown in its buckled-up position,

Fig. 2, a rear view showing the manner 1n which the harness appears on the body with the point of suspens on at the rear thereof,

Fig. 3, a front view with the harness worn in the same manner,

Fi 4:, a View showing the position of the body in mid-air when the harness is worn with the point of suspension at the rear, 1

rovide a harness,

Fig. 5, the harness as it appears with the polnt of suspension at the front of the body, F 1g. 6, a section taken on line 66 of Fig. 7, a view showing the manner in who the suspender strap may be reinforced at the point of suspension, and

Fig. 8, a rear view of one of the body shields provided beneath the buckles on both the breast and le straps.

Referring to ig. 1 of the drawings, 1 represents the breast strap of the harness WhlCllis adapted to be adjustably secured about the chest of the wearer snugly but not so tight as to interfere with breathing by means of buckle 2 and gromets 3 with which it is provided. Shoulder straps 4 and 5 which are secured at their ends, preferably by stitching, to breast strap 1, serve to further hold breast strap 1 in place. These shoulder straps are also secured to each other by means of patch 6 where they cross just above the suspension point of the harness, the patch being superposed over the uppermost of the. shoulder straps and the patch and straps securely stitched together.

Suspender strap 7, at the ends of which are provided leg straps 8 and 9 connected thereto by suspender loops 10 and 11 respec tively, is looped about the middle portion of breast strap 1 and secured firmly thereto so that the ends of strap 7 hangat the same angle to the breast strap, as shown. Enough of strap 7 is allowed to project above the upper edge of breast strap 1 as to provide a loop for suspension ring 12 which is placed on strap 7 before the latter is completely attached to the breast strap 1, The cable extending from the parachute may be secured by any suitable means to suspension ring 12. If desired, a reinforcementstrip 13, such as shown in Fig. 7, may be provided at the loop of suspender strap-7 in order to take care of the excessive strain and wear at that point of the harness.

Gromets 14 and 15 are provided near the ends of suspender strap 7 in order to cooperate with buckles 16 and 17 of suspender loops 10 and 11 respectively, whereby the parts may be adjustably secured together. The

. suspender loops 10 and 11 are provided with I loops at their lower ends through which leg straps 8 and 9 respectively pass. Loops 18 and 19 on the leg straps serve to retain the ends of suspender strap 7 in position thereon.

The leg straps 8 and 9 are provided at their ends with buckle 20 and gromets 21 and buckle 22 and gromets 23 respectively, whereby the same may be adjustably secured about the thighs of the aeronaut.

On the side of buckles 2, 20 and 22 adjacent the body of the aeronaut, there are provided shields 24, 25 and 26 respectively which serve to protect the wearers body from inju due to the extreme pressure of these buck es thereon while suspended from the arachute. Each of these shields is secure attached to the strap to which the buck e is secured, as shown in Fig. 8. When made of web material, it is preferable that the end of each of the straps, opposite the buckle, be provided with a metal t1p 1n order to prevent fraying of the strap. If the harness is of leather, the gromets and metal tips shown will not be required.

In Fig. 2, the harness is shown as it appears on the aeronaut with the point of suspension at his back, while F g. 3 shows the front View of the apparatus 1n the same position on the body. Fig. 4 illustrates the aeronaut in the position 1n which he is held when the parachute is in flight, the body being tipped slightly forward from the vert1- cal. This position is a most advantageous one when landing, as it insures the aeronauts landing on the tips of his toes first, and should he approach the ground too rapidly, he will, due to this position, be able by means of his hands, to prevent his body from coming in sudden contact wlth the ground with the consequent serious results.

It will be seen that the manner in which the harness is attached to the body does not interfere with the free movement of the areonauts hands and legs, and in fact, allows ready access to any part of the body. Should it become necessary, in case of emergency, the aeronaut might even swim with the harness in places Fig.- 5 is illustrative of the manner in which the harness may readily be worn with the point of suspension in front of the body, although the position in which the body is suspended in this case lacks certain of the advantages incident to the other mode of suspension.

While the details of construction of the invention have been described more or less precisely, it is not intended that the scope of the invention be limited thereto, as changes in form, the proportion of parts, and the substitution of equivalents as circumstances may suggest or render expedient, may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What I claim is:

1. In a parachute harness, the combination of a breast strap, thigh-encircling straps, united connecting straps between said breast strap and thigh-encircling straps, and suspension means on said united connecting straps.

2. In a parachute harness, the combination of a breast strap, thigh-encircling straps, united connecting straps between said breast strap and thigh-encircling straps, suspension means on said united connecting straps, and means for adjusting the distance between said breast strap and the thigh-encircling straps.

3. In a parachute harness, the combination of a breast strap, thigh-encirclin straps, a suspender strap connected at eac end to one of said thigh-encircling straps and secured at its middle portion to the middle portion of said breast strap, and suspension means on said suspender strap at the middle portion thereof.

4. In a parachute harness, the combination of a breast strap, a suspender strap secured at its middle portion to said breast strap, thigh-encircling straps, adjustable means connecting each end of said suspender strap to the corresponding thigh-encircling strap, and suspension means on said suspender strap.

5. A parachute harness comprising in combination, a suspender strap folded back on itself at an angle near its middle portion, a breast strap passin between and secured to the folds of sai suspender strap near the crease thereof, a suspension rin on said suspender strap at the crease thereo shoulder straps connected to said breast strap, and leg straps connected to the ends of said suspender strap.

6. A parachute harness comprising in combination, a suspender strap folded back on itself at an angle near its middle portion, a breast strap passing between and secured to the folds of said suspender strap near the crease thereof, a suspension ring on said suspender strap at the crease thereof, shoulder straps connected to said breast strap, and leg straps adjustably connected to the ends of said suspender strap.

7. The combination in a parachute harness of a breast strap, leg straps, a suspender strap secured at its middle portion to said breast strap, each end of said suspender strap bein provided with a strap adapted to adjusta ly connect the end of the suspender strap with theleg strap, each of said connecting straps being provided with a loop at its end through which the corresponding leg strap passes.

8. The combination in a parachute harness, of a breast strap, leg stra s, a susa loop at its end through which' the corre pended strap secured at its middie portion sponding leg strap passes, and means for to said breast strap, each end of said suslimiting the movement of said leg straps in 10 pender strap bein provided with a strap said loops.

5 adapted to adjusta ly connect the end of the In testimony whereof I have afiixed my suspender strap with the leg strap, each of signature. said connecting straps being provided with I EDWARD ROY BOLAND. 

